Staff at 17 English college employers on strike from today for better pay and working conditions

UCU members at all 17 colleges [NOTES] will be on strike on: 

• Wednesday, 14 January 
• Thursday, 15 January 
• Friday, 16 January 

Staff will be at picket lines on all three days, with a national rally at the Emmanuel Centre in Westminster at 12pm on Friday, 16 January. 

UCU is calling for a New Deal for FE, including pay parity with schoolteachers, national workload agreements and a binding national bargaining framework. 

UCU general secretary Jo Grady said: 'Industrial action is a last resort, but staff up and down England have been left with no choice. There is still time for colleges to make fair offers that help close the pay gap between school and college teachers. 

'Our demands are reasonable, and management at the 17 colleges where staff are taking action need to look at those that worked to settle their disputes. Employers must now agree to meaningful sectoral bargaining so further education can avoid the cycle of strike ballots and disruption that we have seen over the past few years.'